New and improved CCM Spitfire ridden and rated
Stylish Brit single has attracted a lot of attention but will it take off?
It won’t have escaped your notice that the retro scene is booming. New machines, inspired by old ones, are being churned out on an almost daily basis, so much so the choice can be overwhelming. The major manufacturers have got in on the act, complete with contrived back stories and clothing ranges; the Chinese have some pretty tasty looking offerings; and of course there are the cut-and-shut varieties created by men with nice facial hair. And because these bikes are less about performance and more about style, it doesn’t matter what kind you go for, as long as it tickles your nostalgic taste buds.
Surprise hit
Bolton-based CCM may be most famous for off-road exploits, but their Spitfire range of retros has been an instant success. From the bike’s inception two years ago, order books have been full and they’ve been hand-building 20 to 30 a week to meet demand. In fact, it’s such a success they’ve already sold out of the original model (the Scrambler) even before the first customer machine has been built, all of which means you’ll need to get in quick to get your name on this latest version: the £9274 Spitfire Café Racer.
Café culture
Sitting neatly between the massproduced and artisan, CCM’s new Café Racer is powered by a 55bhp, 600cc, single-cylinder, BMW-designed, Husqvarna motor that’s hung like a piece of art in a lacquered, tubular steel frame so beautiful it’ll make your beard stand on end. The engine and chassis are the same throughout the Spitfire range, but the Café Racer is set apart by its clip-ons, spoked wheels, knobbly tyres and a ‘71’ race number (CCM were formed the year Britain went decimal) plus a host of tasty details. The lightweight machine is also built to Single Vehicle Approval, so isn’t weighed down by sound deadening, bulky exhausts, or strangled by electronics.
Feel-good Sundays
Despite its name, however, the Café Racer isn’t a machine for tearing up back roads. Instead it’s more for those sunny Sunday morning rides we all dream about.
At just 145kg dry, our preproduction test bike is supermotolight and agile but lacks the easy refinement of the best from BMW, Ducati, Triumph or Kawasaki. It has a tougher, rawer feel. Ride quality is on the firm side of compliant and girder-stiff billet aluminium yokes give the CCM’s front end the distinctive jarring feel of a newgeneration Norton or Hesketh... or an old Bimota or Confederate. The 19in front wheel and knobbly tyre doesn’t offer the last word in pin-sharp handling and the single front disc brake set-up won’t launch you over the bars, either, but if you want that you’re better off with a Thruxton R or R nineT.
And if it’s a performance bike you’re after you’d better look elsewhere because the CCM is all about taking it easy, feeling good and enjoying two wheels with a gentle breeze in your face. It’s fun and involving at low speed, has generous legroom and the stretch down to the clip-ons won’t make you grimace. The single-cylinder motor has just the right mix of smoothness and burbling character. Power is modest but delivered seamlessly with a throttle response so buttery it would put any mass-produced retro to shame, even with the ‘two-fingers-to-Euro4’ straight-through prototype exhausts fitted to our test bike. Production Spitfires will come with slash-cut underslung pipes.
Factory order
CCM doesn’t have a dealer network, so you’ll have to order your Spitfire Café Racer directly from the factory in Bolton. Dealing directly with the people who’ll build your bike fits right in with the ethos of the Spitfire Café racer. Your bike will even be delivered to your door and CCM will come to you for servicing (every 3500 miles), set-up and repairs. You can also spec your bike with a host of official performance accessories and cosmetic trinkets.
Is it worth it?
£9274 will get you either 185 cut and beard trims at The Bike Shed or an exclusive, beautifully hand-built British motorcycle, dripping in mouth-watering design and parts and with a twoyear warranty. It’s a bargain. Sure it won’t have the performance of its more expensive rivals, but then all retros are going the same speed when they’re cruising past a plate glass shopfront checking out their reflections.
‘At just 145kg it’s supermoto light and agile’
‘It’s all about taking it easy and enjoying two wheels’